The Government has launched its Industrial Strategy to tackle the country’s poor productivity, featuring local industrial plans, funding for infrastructure, and four ‘Sector Deals’ including in the construction and automotive sectors.

Sub-national transport bodies from across the country are holding regular meetings to coordinate strategies and share best practice, while East Anglian authorities are in early talks over forming another potential regional group, Transport Network can reveal.

Glasgow City Council has insisted that it and its City Deal partners are committed to taking forward ‘a surface access project’ to Glasgow airport, but is rethinking its current plans following a consultant’s report that cast doubt on the scheme.

A Conservative metro mayor has promised that a review of local bus services will fully explore franchising after a plea from ministers for councils to consider using the new powers in the Bus Services Act.

A senior figure at the Department for Transport has refused to rule out the use of competitive bidding when it comes to local or regional funding allocations around the proposed major road network (MRN).

Chancellor Philip Hammond is set to boost transport technology in today's Autumn Budget, with support for driverless and low emission vehicles, as well as cash for 5G mobile networks and digital skills.

The Transport Select Committee is launching a new inquiry to find out whether bold claims about the transformative power of Mobility as a Service (MaaS) are justified and how it can be taken forward in the UK.

The chairman of the National Infrastructure Commission has called for billions of pounds of infrastructure investment in the Oxford, Milton Keynes and Cambridge ‘brain belt’, which he said could add hundreds of billions to the national economy.

The sub-national transport body (STB) for the South East of England has continued to develop its plans to tackle the region’s ‘challenging’ infrastructure issues, with the support of MPs from the region.

Local authorities need to take a proactive approach to avoid falling behind as potentially game-changing digital innovation is applied on the strategic road network (SRN) and in large smart cities, council directors have warned.

Highways England has confirmed that it will spend £250,000 on a study into a possible scheme that could upgrade a section of the A27 in Sussex to dual carriageway, despite progressing a £75m upgrade to the route.

Britain’s railway industry has launched a plan for a ‘partnership railway’ that it says will transform services in the next 18 months, while providing almost £85bn of economic benefits in the long term.

The Government’s commitment to improving the UK’s infrastructure is not translating into optimism, with transport firms dissatisfied with the pace of delivery and not confident that things will improve in the near future.

Local authorities should ensure they have strong policies in place requiring active travel connectivity in new developments to address a mismatch between their goals and those of developers, a think tank has said.

Bosses at large urban transport authorities have called for faster progress towards improved transport networks, including rapid implementation of the Bus Services Act, a ‘more ambitious’ air quality strategy and more funding for active travel.

The Department for Transport (DfT) should develop and maintain a publicly available national transport data catalogue and address the issue of standards for big data, a new government-commissioned report says.

Brian Fitzpatrick of Fitzpatrick Advisory comments on the findings of the latest FiTZ INDEX survey of highways professionals, which shows almost unanimous support for a five-year investment strategy for the local road network and strong support for fewer highways authorities.

The council that covers the historic city of Bath is set to drop plans to build a park and ride scheme on picturesque meadows to the East of the city, but remains committed to building a new link road in the same area.

The Government has said sub-national transport bodies (STBs) will play a key role in the regional management of its proposed major road network (MRN), but admitted it will need to consult on arrangements where no STB exists.

As the deal between the Conservative Government and the DUP is set to boost roads spending in Northern Ireland, Transport Network takes a look at how the highways network is run in the devolved nation.

Civil engineering contractors have backed the Government’s plans to legislate to deliver
the next phase of HS2 but reaction to the Queen’s speech has noted the infrastructure projects that were not mentioned.

A leaked draft of Labour’s general election manifesto pledges to nationalise the railway industry and take HS2 to Scotland, as well as borrowing billions to fund infrastructure and expanding council house building.

The chair of a key committee of MPs has criticised the Government’s refusal to commit to maintaining air quality standards after Brexit and called its estimate of the carbon impacts of Heathrow expansion ‘a fantasy’.

The Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT) has highlighted a trio of asks for the next government, including a total expenditure (totex) approach to transport infrastructure investment.

Delivering billions of pounds of nationally-funded and local transport investment in the West Midlands will require a level of inter-agency cooperation that has rarely been seen before, as well as new powers, according to the region’s transport body.

Civil engineering contractors have called for the next government to keep its focus on 'the schemes needed to tackle congestion' and tackle costly procurement rules as it negotiates Britain’s exit from the EU.

New metro mayors will have the power to transform their city regions, but there has been little policy development for this purpose, a think tank has said, while bus franchising is among five policies that should be regarded as priorities.

A new Transport Knowledge Hub promises to equip Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), councils and others with the tools and expertise to make 'cost-effective and impactful' decisions on local transport.

Lord Selborne, chairman of the Lords Science and Technology Committee, talks to Transport Network about the issues that the development of connected and autonomous vehicles raise for central and local government.

Transport for the North (TfN) has set out how it will create ‘England’s first pan-regional Strategic Transport Plan’ (STP) but appears to have put back plans to publish an initial draft of the document.

A quiet revolution has been taking place in transport. It is a revolution in how we access services, transforming the lives of people of all levels of mobility, and its main weapons are open data, smartphones, application programming interfaces (APIs) and of course the now ubiquitous app.

A new standardised approach to measuring housing need will be used to reform the NPPF and create a key metric in secondary infrastructure spending in areas like transport, the Government's Housing White Paper has established.

Increased recognition of the role transport plays in providing access to healthcare and reducing social isolation and a renewed focus on the night time economy are key changes in the finalised Greater Manchester Transport Strategy 2040.

MPs have welcomed the Bus Services Bill but say they are unconvinced by the Government’s position on the availability of franchising powers, banning new municipal bus companies and supporting rural services.

A committee of MPs will next week question the transport secretary on the environmental impacts of expanding Heathrow after a key body questioned the Government’s presentation of likely greenhouse gas emissions.

With rail connections to the South West disrupted again this week, an alliance of councils and businesses has demanded billions of pounds of resilience measures and connectivity enhancements to the region’s rail network.

The lack of clarity around the UK’s economic policy in the run up to Brexit should be addressed by the Government through ‘a clear plan for devolution’ that allows combined authorities to take a local lead, a top infrastructure firm has said.

Scottish council leaders have reacted with dismay at reports that a planned major reorganisation of local government could see some services devolved to local level and others, such as responsibility for roads, taken over by the Scottish Government.

A potential British Silicon Valley will be left behind its international competitors without a joined-up plan for housing, jobs and infrastructure, the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) has said.

A leading infrastructure firm has added to the chancellor’s suggestion that he will back ‘modest, rapidly deliverable investments’ with a call for a new, broader type of economic modelling for infrastructure projects.

The ADEPT annual conference this year takes place a day after the Autumn Statement, giving council directors a first opportunity to analyse and debate the key issues with senior figures in local and central government.

A senior MP has called on Chris Grayling to clarify the criteria he would use to assess bids for sub-national transport bodies (STBs), after the transport secretary said they are ‘not the answer for every part of the country’.

Nottingham City Council, which runs a municipal bus company, has received the highest overall rating in a major survey of public satisfaction with highways and transport, including registering the highest score for local bus services.

Breaking county councils up into smaller unitary authorities would fragment key services, including transport, while county based unitaries could save hundreds of millions annually, the County Councils Network has said.

Leaders from Greater Manchester’s local authorities have approved a draft spatial framework for the region, which prioritises brownfield land and seeks to link hundreds of thousands of new homes and jobs with transport infrastructure.

The Government’s assurances to Nissan included assuring the company that it would seek tariff-free access to EU markets for the car manufacturing industry as part of Brexit talks, the business secretary has said.

The National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), which will be set up as an executive agency without statutory status from January, has begun the next phase of developing a National Infrastructure Assessment (NIA).

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has warned Heathrow Airport that future Government backing for expansion plans will depend on its engagement with major airlines on ‘designing in’ cost efficiency, to avoid increasing already high landing charges.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has pledged to use his significant powers over transport to make London 'a healthy, resilient, fair and green city’ as population and economic growth put increasing pressure on its transport network.

Conservative Zac Goldsmith has resigned as an MP over the Government’s backing for an expanded Heathrow airport, while local politicians including London’s mayor have said they are considering challenging the decision in the courts.

A senior aide warned David Cameron last autumn that the Government did not have an answer on the issue of air quality if it backed plans for a new runway at Heathrow, according to a document obtained by the Guardian.

Concerns have been raised over the news that the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) is to be put on a permanent footing without statutory status, including a lukewarm response from its current chair.

The dispute between Derbyshire County Council and Sheffield City Region over the future status of the Derbyshire town of Chesterfield has come to a head in advance of a pending legal case over an allegedly ‘misleading and flawed’ consultation.

The Department for Transport (DfT) is proposing major changes to its transport scheme appraisal guidance - known as WebTAG - with plans to make the system more flexible and to integrate wider economic analysis.

The chair of a key Commons committee has written to ministers demanding clear answers on the economic case for airport expansion and describing HS2 as having the weakest economic case of the projects in the Government’s infrastructure programme.

Transport bosses from the country’s biggest city regions have set out a route map for what an effective relationship with Government should look like, including prompt enactment of the Bus Services Bill, more stable funding and tougher action on toxic air.

Ministers have said ‘lessons learnt’ from last winter’s floods have led to a ‘new approach’, but the Government’s review of flood resilience in England includes little new money in response to predictions of much higher rainfall.

Three unitary councils in Hampshire have agreed plans to create a Solent Combined Authority but the county council has again warned of the dangers to countywide services if its district councils sign up.

Civil engineers have rejected suggestions from the head of the National Audit Office (NAO) that Government should rationalise its portfolio of major projects or see it ‘come to a halt under its own weight’ as the civil service is over-stretched by Brexit.

With Theresa May moving into Number 10 after six years in the cabinet, many of her recent public comments about economic, transport and infrastructure issues will have reflected the Government’s views, rather than her own. Here are five areas where we might deduce which way she will steer policy.

Derbyshire CC has said the public are being ‘hoodwinked’ over a consultation on plans to put a Sheffield mayor in charge of transport and other services in Chesterfield, in the latest twist in a long-running tug-of-war.

Network Rail has pledged to make it easier for disabled people to plan journeys and travel by rail after publishing research showing that a quarter of disabled passengers say they worry about their journeys.

Chancellor George Osborne has warned that the Northern Powerhouse must not be left behind in a post-Brexit Britain as a think tank called for major changes to transport and infrastructure in the North.

Former London mayor Boris Johnson has announced that he will not stand to lead the Conservative Party – and therefore become the next prime minister – after fellow Brexit campaigner Michael Gove put himself forward for the top job.

Leaders in the transport and engineering sectors have stressed the importance of maintaining stability following the vote to leave the European Union, amid fears that turmoil could undermine investment in infrastructure.

Heathrow has claimed that the vote to leave the EU has made its case for a new runway at the airport ‘stronger than ever before’ but opponents have said it cast doubt on whether it ‘will ever be given the green light’.

The West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) is seeking new powers to enable it to operate a ‘Key Route Network’ for the region, including powers to enforce moving traffic violations and create Clean Air Zones (CAZ).

Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) said it will drive forward more than £4bn of transport infrastructure over the coming decade, including more tram extensions, new suburban rail lines, cycle routes and better motorways.

The leader of Hampshire CC has warned of the danger of splitting the county’s highways and transport functions in half under proposals – which Hampshire rejects – for two separate combined authorities in the county.

The much-anticipated Buses Bill will hand franchising powers to
areas with directly elected mayors, while others will be able to apply for them. Legislation will also
be introduced to facilitate autonomous and electric vehicles.

The chief executive of Transport for the North (TfN) has stressed its intention to transform transport infrastructure across the whole region, following suggestions that the Northern Powerhouse is 'M62-centric'.

The Government-commissioned report that recommended a new runway at Heathrow significantly underestimated the costs of improving surface transport access, which could exceed £18bn, according to Transport for London (TfL).

Highways England will give emerging sub-national transport bodies ‘a prominent role’ in drawing up the next round of route strategies, which will in turn feed into the Government’s second Road Investment Strategy (RIS2).

Former civil service head Lord Kerslake has led a review into devolution, calling for a coherent set of ‘guiding principles’ to stabilise the Union and help overcome decades of centralisation and the piecemeal progress of devolution.

The smart and sustainable travel community has ‘a job of work’ to do to access funding from the successor to the Local Sustainable Travel Fund (LSTF), a senior Department for Transport (DfT) official has said.

Following Transport for London's recent announcement of a £148m investment in boroughs' Local Implementation Plans (LIPs) for 2016/17, Jason Hawthorne, MD of Wagstaffs, looks at how 3D digital visualisation can help transport planning in busy urban environments.

Leaders in the West Midlands have signed a provisional £1bn devolution deal with government that brings a directly elected mayor to the region from 2017, responsible for a raft of new transport powers.

After winning a contract to help create a masterplan framework for the UK’s first 21st century Garden City, an expert at infrastructure giant AECOM takes us through the issues around building a modern city designed to stand the test of time.

Transport interchange and station operators are being invited to save potentially millions of pounds by testing the passenger impacts of planned schemes in a new visualisation laboratory from industry innovation hub the Transport Systems Catapult.

A strategic transport alliance of three major county councils together with four unitary partners is set to establish a high level transport forum to advance plans to integrate services and collaborate on projects across the region, Transport Network can reveal.

Last week’s ferry strike in Calais and the Airport Commission report into airport capacity may have at first glance little in common. However both highlight to us Brits that we are an island highly dependent on a handful of transport pinch points.

Having just taken over the presidency of ADEPT, Heather Barnes has a sizeable task ahead. Yet her enthusiasm is undimmed and she brings to the role a wealth of experience. She speaks to Thomas Bridge about community commissioning, devolution and her secret to keeping motivated.

New cross-boundary 'total transport authorities' should be set up in towns and rural areas to provide integrated delivery solutions and take control of devolved powers and funding, a leading economic think tank has urged.

Transport leaders in the North intend to move past the Government’s
traditional appraisal system as they look to deliver on regional
strategies, including Greater Manchester's vision for the next 25
years, Transport Network can reveal.

Each of the seven councils in the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) are poised to take responsibility for different portfolios including transport, as they decide on power sharing arrangements for the body.

A total of seven councils are now piloting greater community and business involvement in highways and place management, including low-level road maintenance and infrastructure development, Transport Network can reveal.

By introducing emissions-based vehicle exercise duty on new cars that will go towards the funding of roads, the Chancellor is sending all the right messages to the highways and transport sector. But what about local roads?

After 30 years experience in highways, Trevor Collett talks to Dominic Browne about his hopes and concerns for the sector and being next in line to be president of the Local Government Technical Advisers Group (TAG).

Full central funding of concessionary fares schemes, devolved local management of the Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) and pooled funding for roads maintenance are three key asks from council chiefs ahead of the July Spending Review.

Communities secretary Greg Clark has announced that no devolution deal will be done without the backing of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), in a move likely to prove controversial with some in the local government sector.

The Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation has released a guide to local transport consultations outlining the legal and statutory duties involved in local or nationally significant infrastructure and place-shaping projects.

The High Court has ruled that Swansea Council acted unlawfully when making changes to faith school transport, after officers wrongly advised there was an absolute duty to provide free school transport to Welsh language schools.

City leaders across the country have given a mixed reaction to chancellor George Osborne's conditional offer of devolution based on directly elected mayors, with at least one city region reconsidering its position.

The North West ports operator, Peel Ports, is calling on the UK freight and logistics industry to switch more goods from South East landings to the Port of Liverpool to cut costs and bring down the carbon footprint of inland transportation to the North.

Highways England has thrown its weight behind a groundbreaking event this autumn bringing together strategic roads chiefs, council directors, contractors and the industry’s leading trade bodies to transform the way the local and national elements work in unison.

Newly released urban design guidance will be promoted by leading professional body the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT) at Traffex 2015, along with a new membership offer for apprentices.

The number of people signing up to achieve professional qualifications in transport planning is on the rise again following the recession, the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT) has revealed.

Transport and town planners need to give more consideration to the interaction between retail and traffic as councils across the country seek to manage congestion and the possibility of ‘peak car’, a foremost expert in transport policy has warned.

Stephen Joseph, chief executive director of Campaign for Better Transport, is a figurehead in the industry,
recognised for his tireless efforts to improve national mobility. Dominic Browne discusses his greatest achievements, the biggest transport myths that need debunking and national transport policy.

The umbrella body for the capital’s local authorities, London Councils, plans to focus on improving the day-to-day management of older and disabled persons’ Freedom Passes and Taxicards, under its business plan for 2015-16.

Highways England plans to develop a ‘multi-layered’ relationship with local authorities centred on individual strategic memorandums of understanding (MOU) with key councils or groups of councils, Transport Network can reveal.

Pressure is mounting on the Welsh Government after a second of its advisers questioned governance arrangements in the devolved nation, claiming the South Wales Metro transport plan has no suitable delivery body.

One of the UK’s biggest growth areas, the east of London, is being held back by a ‘disconnect’ between officers and local politicians and a lack of sub-regional representation, Transport for London (TfL) has warned.

Transport leaders were notably vociferous at this week’s Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT) National Conference, unafraid to take the Coalition to task over funding, devolution, leadership and maintenance.

The Welsh Government will receive a range of transport powers including control over bus service registration and speed limits, with potentially more in the pipeline, under the St David's Day devolution deal outlined by Westminster.

The Government has been accused of ‘burying its head in the sand’ and allowing unsustainable developments to go unchecked after it refused to act on recommendations made by influential cross-party MPs.

Communities secretary Eric Pickles has suggested the number of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) could fall after the election, with a wave of mergers on the cards to help the bodies better reflect ‘real economic areas’.

The mayor and Transport for London have unveiled plans to build an 11km backstreet Cycle Superhighway between White Hart Lane in Tottenham, Stoke Newington, Dalston and the City of London - acting as an A10 bypass.

This month ADEPT’s transport board together with senior figures from associated areas of central and local government debated the links between public health and transport and how directors could become more involved in this cross-cutting agenda.

Education ministers should consider intervening in local transport policy if it is a ‘significant barrier’ to 16- to 18-year-olds staying in education, employment or training, an influential group of MPs has said.

Large-scale developments in the North could be hit with greater local levies as councils seek to divert more cash towards transport infrastructure to support billions of pounds of investment, Transport Network can reveal.

Manchester City Council’s leader has defended plans to establish an elected mayor for the city region without a public vote, after facing a public backlash over the proposal with a campaign already launched against it.

Glasgow and Renfrewshire councils are currently establishing a project team to begin work on a Glasgow Airport rail link under the £1.13bn long-term infrastructure investment bound for the region as a result of its 2014 City Deal.

With general electioneering arriving with the start of 2015, one of the nation’s top engineering bodies was not to be outdone and has launched its own General Election campaign to keep infrastructure front and centre over the next parliament.

The top transport authority for south Yorkshire has earmarked £235,000 for a detailed study of new station options for HS2, and the best part of a further £50,000 on a PR campaign around the project despite facing major cuts next year.

A new ‘social innovation’ model for delivering transport services across Northamptonshire is being considered by the county council, in a groundbreaking move that officers hope will save millions within the first two years.

The Government’s £15bn for the strategic road network appears to have shifted the political middle ground with Labour’s new shadow transport secretary Michael Dugher suggesting his party would be more pro-motorist with a localist slant.

Local government transport, highways and infrastructure services have suffered some of the most extensive cuts over this parliament according to a new report from national auditors, which paints a grim picture of councils’ future financial stability.

Cardiff councillors have approved a Local Transport Plan which includes light rail as well as bus priority measures on suburban corridors into Cardiff – a topic which previously proved too contentious for the council.

The UK’s top business lobbies have stressed the need for greater roads investment in the run up to the chancellor’s Autumn Statement, backing schemes for tunnelled highways under Stonehenge and the Pennines.

The central organisation for coordinating the work of England’s 39 Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) is due for showdown talks with growth minister Greg Clark over its limited resources, as it faces the possibility of closing down from 8 December, Transport Network can reveal.

Council directors have called for an ‘urgent review’ of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) and the ‘cumbersome, restrictive and inappropriate‘ transport assessment methodology used in their strategic economic plans.

Business leaders in Birmingham have warned against including a workplace parking levy in the additional ring-fenced business taxation needed to implement the city's £4bn transport plan - announced last week by transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin MP.

Experts in Wales have outlined a vision of how the next generation’s transport systems could look, predicting that by 2035 driverless vehicles will be on the roads and road user charging could be taken forward under a new Welsh Highways Agency.

The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has failed to publish accountability arrangements for Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) months after the 39 local bodies were allocated billions of pounds of taxpayers' cash and despite a departmental promise to do so, Transport Network can reveal.

Crewe is set to win the recommendation of HS2 Ltd's chairman Sir David Higgins in his eagerly anticipated report on Monday (27 October) instead of its rival Stoke-on-Trent, Transport Network understands.

Local government has been placed at the heart of prime minister David Cameron’s plans to instigate a ‘cycling revolution’ in this country, with councils called on to form bespoke partnerships with Westminster to boost cycling numbers.

Urban and rural travellers and tourists, users of passenger ferries, and flood-prone communities are among likely beneficiaries of new ‘white space’ broadband technology in which the UK is taking a European lead.

Stoke-On-Trent City Council has made its biggest push yet to win a place on the HS2 line with a new report stating it is the ’technically superior, cheaper and faster’ option compared to its arch rival Crewe and 'saves the tax payer at least £2bn’.

Techniques borrowed from the gaming industry including challenges, rewards and avatars could ‘genuinely empower’ people in transport planning, an expert working on a 'playable' transport modelling system has claimed.

Labour’s prospective parliamentary candidate for Rossendale and Darwen, Will Straw, has called for major investment in the East Lancashire region to create a ‘hub’ for the aerospace and energy industry and for better connectivity with Manchester.

One of the UK’s leading highways and transportation groups has launched a manifesto calling for a major shake-up in finance and strategic planning to avoid creating isolated communities left in ‘economic vacuums’.

Local government stalwart ( and 'last of the great county surveyors') Tony Ciaburro has stepped down from chairing the Adept transport board but has said he will remain active in the local government sector and beyond.

Stoke-on-Trent’s dreams of hosting a high speed rail station have taken another blow today with reports that HS2 Ltd chairman, Sir David Higgins, will favour Crewe instead when he makes a progress report next month.

The Department for Transport’s (DfT) approach to road maintenance funding is ‘ludicrous’, with decades of ‘unpredictable and fluctuating budgets’ putting value for money at risk, an influential group of MPs has claimed.

Key English councils have called for reforms to Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) - which help deliver transport policies through strategic economic plans - as part of wider attempts to create a new deal on devolved powers to drive growth.

Former prime minister Gordon Brown has suggested Scotland could be in line for more transport controls while fractious arguments between the UK’s leading political parties have led No 10 to reaffirm its commitment to further Scottish devolution.

Top accountants have warned the next stage of Scottish devolution, which could hand major financial and infrastructure controls to Holyrood, will not be easy given there is ‘no true picture’ of the devolved nation’s financial situation.

The United Kingdom is set for a radical wave of devolution, as powers over local finances and infrastructure could be handed down from Westminster in the wake of the Scottish ‘no’ vote for independence.

A group of leading academics have backed Boris Johnson’s plans for a massive extension of London’s cycle superhighways, including an 18-mile ‘Crossrail for the bike’, while criticising current transport modelling for cycling.

Government officials are developing monitoring frameworks for Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) that could see all 39 partnerships signing up to an ‘evaluation plan’ by next spring, Transport Network can reveal.

Can we ever achieve true transport integration across different
modes and between cities and towns? Adrian Tatum reports from
the latest in a series of Surveyor and TEC round table debates
which took place at Intertraffic in Amsterdam, Holland.

The Government has announced Local Enterprise Partnerships’ (LEPs') first cash allocations from the Local Growth Fund, with £6bn of the minimum £12bn pot now earmarked for major transport, housing and other growth projects.

Councils and Local Enterprise Partnerships must be ‘front and centre’ in unlocking the benefits of HS2 by becoming 'magnets for growth' the Government said today in response to a key report from the HS2 Growth Taskforce.

Gatwick airport has pledged a £256m investment package to help win over local residents to its second runway plans, with offers including cash for jet noise reduction, road improvements and the purchase of houses for demolition.

More than 35 councils from up and down the UK have joined together with local transport bodies to call for significant upgrades to the East Coast Mainline, in a bid to boost the UK economy by up to £9bn a year.

The Department for Transport (DfT) has been left red-faced and having to defend its geographical knowledge after a series of blunders in its announcement of Local Sustainable Transport Fund allocations.

Car sharing schemes could ‘revolutionise’ transport Baroness Kramer said today, although industry insiders suggest a range of policy initiatives are needed to help the concept move past the ‘early adopters stage’.

Council chiefs have slammed the Government over the difficulties local authorities have to surmount as they bid for local infrastructure and growth cash, claiming that ‘the public purse is having to spend tens of millions on bidding for its own money’.

Engineering consultant,Parsons Brinckerhoff, has appointed Martyn Brooks as director for local government services within the company’s expanding UK highways, transportation and asset management business. Mr Brooks has 30 years of experience and joins from CH2M Hill, where he held a range of management positio

Labour has vowed to abolish the Single Local Growth Fund's competitive bidding process and replace it with a £30bn devolution package that would boost Local Enterprise Partnerships’ (LEPs) transport funds.

The European commissioner for transport Siim Kallas has announced major plans for ‘EU-wide multimodal travel information, planning and ticketing services’, while maintaining that the ‘market’ must lead the way on innovation.

The Government’s replacement for the beleaguered Private Finance Initiative (PFI) funding model for major public infrastructure works, including highways schemes, has no test to ensure taxpayers get value for money influential MPs have warned.

A group of councils in the North East are set to tender a highways surfacing contract framework worth at least £30m - with some estimates reaching as high as £100m over its potential five-year term - as part of the wider NE Highways Alliance project.

Full year results for Network Rail this week revealed the operator struggled to cope with a surge in passenger numbers and poor weather resulting in an increase in delays, despite a record annual investment of nearly £7bn.

Transport for London (TfL) has celebrated record results in its draft 2013-14 Annual Report, which shows customer satisfaction rising to an all time high despite more passengers than ever using the network.

The Preston, South Ribble and Lancashire City Deal is officially launched today, with work set to start on £430m of infrastructure improvements including new roads and other transport schemes designed to boost economic growth.

Camden LBC has outlined a £26m plan to transform the Tottenham Court Road area of the West End ahead of the new Crossrail station in 2018, when Tottenham Court Road station will be busier than Heathrow Airport.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) and the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) are investing £270m in developing an interference-proof device capable of pinpointing a location anywhere on the globe without the use of satellites.

Conservative HS2 rebel, Cheryl Gillan, writes exclusively for Transport Network following the Second Reading of the HS2 (Phase 1) Hybrid Bill, which passed through the Commons last week, but perhaps not with flying colours.

Ministers should provide more specific examples of nationally important transport schemes and develop an integrated strategy reaching across national and local networks, an influential group of MPs said today.

The chief executive of transport infrastructure giant Balfour Beatty has resigned ‘with immediate effect’ as the firm issued a profit warning and announced it is considering the sale of Parsons Brinckerhoff.

The £15bn Crossrail line has become embroiled in controversy after documents leaked to the Observer newspaper suggest industrial relations are close to collapse with workers scared to report injuries for fear of being sacked.

MPs have comprehensively backed legislation enabling the planned HS2 link between London and the West Midlands, however two fresh legal challenges have been brought against the £50bn line from local opposition.

MPs have labelled the disruption at Gatwick airport last winter a ‘wake-up call’ for the aviation sector ‘to get on top of operational resilience issues’ and have called on the Government and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to review the situation.

Mayor of London Boris Johnson has sounded out his party's leadership on creating a Cabinet ‘superpost’ for him in the form of an infrastructure secretary responsible for transport, business and housing, it has emerged.

The south east saw a major boost to its airport services this week, with the opening of London Southend Airport’s extended terminal and Easyjet pledging to create 2,500 jobs at London Luton Airport if the Government approves expansion plans.

Gatwick Airport bosses have launched a new campaign as part of their ongoing battle with rivals Heathrow over expanding the nation’s airport capacity, suggesting their bid could deliver more connections, more quickly with less environmental impact.

A new report has highlighted a stark difference between political opinion and practice on integrated transport, with 39% of MPs strongly agreeing that it should be a priority while only 9% strongly agree that it actually is.

Three new bodies with responsibilities for regional transport and development are set to be launched on 1 April after MPs approved the creation of Merseyside, South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire combined authorities.

A senior Transport for London (TfL) official has used a national conference speech to highlight schemes used overseas to help support continued investment in urban transport, suggesting our funding mechanisms are behind international gold standards.

Cambridgeshire CC is set to copy the groundbreaking work of New York transport commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan, who transformed the Big Apple developing 26 acres of pedestrian space, including 2.5 acres in Times Square.

Council transport directors are set to join forces with the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT) to address the skills ‘crisis’ in the local transport sector, Transport Network can reveal.

What does the industry gain from paying more attention to the social and
economic benefits of investment in local infrastructure? And how can we
use this to influence future funding? Dominic Browne reports from the
latest in a series of round table debates.

Ben Lucas outlines the scope of the
City Growth Commission’s examination
of what can be done to give ‘metros’
the fiscal and revenue powers needed
for urban areas to achieve their growth
potential - taking in the importance of transport and infrastructure

Transport minister Baroness Kramer has revealed there will be significant changes to the way local transport schemes are appraised in the future, with a greater emphasis on wider economic growth rather than simple timesavings.

Britain’s leading business lobby has called for more integrated infrastructure services that take account of 'wider social contributions'. The call was made as part of a push for greater outsourcing that bosses say could save billions.

Two different sides to the HS2 programme: Birmingham City Council revealed its HS2 masterplan, including the new Birmingham Curzon station, while Camden LBC launched a war of words over the redesign of Euston.

Transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin has pledged to ‘look at ways’ to deliver a three-hour rail connection between Plymouth and London, as West Devon calls for an alternative route to the coastal Dawlish line.

Downing Street has vowed to review the resilience of the transport network as the prime minister sends out the first signals that Britain could emerge stronger after this catastrophic period of storms and flooding.

Replacing the Hammersmith Flyover with a tunnel could take just three years and in theory might be self financing by releasing around £1bn worth of former highway land, according to the local council's latest study.

The ongoing flooding crisis has sparked a rift between senior Conservatives in the Cabinet, with reports of a war of words between environment secretary Owen Patterson and communities secretary Eric Pickles.

In the first of our smarter cities series, David Willetts, minister of state for Universities and Science, talks about the UK’s tradition of innovation in the city space and its future in the growing smart city market.

David Cameron pledged that river dredging in Somerset will start as soon as possible in prime minister’s questions today, as the Government’s emergency response committee met to discuss the issue of flooding.

Debate about the much-anticipated Airports Commission heated up yesterday as its chair Sir Howard Davies hit out at mayor of London, Boris Johnson, and said the review could have been delivered before the next election.

CIHT The Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT) is holding its first national conference of 2014 on 19 March at the CBI Conference Centre, Centre Point Tower 103 New Oxford Street, London. The conference is entitled ‘Routes for Growth – ho

A four-year deadlock over the publication of drainage rules for new housing developments drags on as the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) admits an April deadline will not be met.

Council must support wider local growth strategies in their bids to win a slice of the fresh £78.5m of Local Sustainable Transport Fund (LSTF) cash to be released in 2015-16, the Department for Transport (DfT) has said.

Mayor of London Boris Johnson has confirmed transport cash for the capital's councils will be spared cuts over the next three years, as the Local Implementation Fund (LIP) will be held at £148m a year up to 2016-17.

A violent storm has battered the UK leaving at least two dead, closing rail services across Scotland and hitting swathes of coastline with a tidal surge that forced thousands of residents to evacuate their homes.

Local government is expected to freeze council tax in return for protection from additional £2bn cuts to Whitehall budgets over the next two years, chancellor George Osborne warned in today’s Autumn Statement.

The City of York Council looks set to formally endorse and join the West Yorkshire Combined Authority next week, creating a new body to manage a £1.5bn transport and economic infrastructure investment fund.

The debate around helping cities make the most of the potential opportunities of HS2 has largely been missing – now that MPs have voted to release the first round of funding for the project this needs to change.

One of the key planks of mayor of London, Boris Johnson’s objections to High Speed Rail 2 (HS2) has been overcome with the transport secretary, Patrick McLoughlin deciding to construct a tunnel under the capital.

The independent HS2 Growth Taskforce led by former Olympics chief Lord Deighton has warned towns and cities must act now to become ‘HS2 ready’, as it outlined key areas of interest in an initial report published today.

Transport campaigners have called on ministers to take drastic action to tackle the dangers of heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) after new research suggests lorries are involved in an increasing percentage of fatal road accidents in the UK.

An alliance of South East councils representing 9.5 million residents have called for a major expansion of more than one UK airport and connecting surface transport capacity to maintain global competitiveness.

Council-led campaigns against the controversial High Speed Rail 2 (HS2) scheme could be endangered by coalition legislation before parliament, lawyers commissioned by the Local Government Association (LGA) have warned.

The CBI has called for local and national infrastructure plans to be ‘integrated’ and local transport teams to engage more with business as part of a series of measures designed to rejuvenate the high street.

Political heavyweights and transport experts will be in attendance at the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) conference UK Transport, the Engine for Growth taking place tomorrow at the ICE’s headquarters in Westminster.

Public concern about the
state of our roads and the
cleanliness of our streets
leapfrogged schools,
health services and even
crime in this year’s Ipsos
MORI research, as
Victoria Harkness - head of local government research at independent research agency - explains.

Transport for London sites from Blackwell tunnel to Victoria station will take part in Open Doors and Open House this month, giving the public a further insight into transport the capital’s transport system.

Pressure is growing on the Department for Transport (DfT) to change the way highways maintenance funding is allocated to councils after concerns have been raised in the North over a possible £125m shortfall in cash.

Deputy prime minister Nick Clegg has written in the Financial Times today to stress the importance of High Speed Rail 2 (HS2) for the nation, stating without it London risks losing its status as an ‘economic global powerhouse’.

Tens of thousands of school children are being put at risk by road pollution in London as more than 1,000 schools are found to be within 150 metres of roads with such bad traffic emissions it could affect their health.

Government plans for a time-based road user charging system for foreign heavy goods vehicles (HGVS) took a step closer today with the appointment of Northgate Public Services to develop and operate the system.

The programme director for South Yorkshire’s transport strategy, Frances Adams, has left South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE), prompting a a re-shuffle at the top of region's transport management.

Drivers could be given a 15-minute ‘grace period’ on double yellow lines under plans floated by the Conservatives today - allowing shoppers to park on high streets and quickly use shops without fear of being fined.

A concept for a new type of transportation system has been unveiled by Paypal founder Elon Musk, who developed the idea for an 800mph, near-supersonic 'Hyperloop' system to link Los Angeles and San Francisco.

The Institution of Civil Engineers’ (ICE) membership records have been included in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register in recognition of their international importance alongside such works as the Bayeux tapestry and Magna Carta.

The Department for Transport (DfT) has set out the strategic platform behind the Spending Review’s major transport investment, designed to ‘help transport planners to make the case for joined-up planning’.

Congestion on locally managed ‘A’ roads increased during peak hours this spring, with all motor vehicle traffic on all road types increasing and light vehicle miles reaching their highest since records began.

The Department for Transport (DfT) has sent a clear warning to colleagues at the Department for International Development (DFID) that ‘roads are not enough to improve mobility’ based on international data sets.

The Highways Maintenance Efficiency Programme (HMEP) has launched a new leaflet aimed at local politicians, explaining how asset management in highway maintenance can ensure the ‘best use of available funds’.

The Government has confirmed the members of the High Speed Rail 2 (HS2) Growth Taskforce including chair Lord Deighton one of the key architects of the London Olympics, deputy chair Sir Howard Bernstein, CEO of Manchester City Council, and Sir Albert Bore, leader of Birmingham City Council.

The Court of Appeal today dismissed all four appeals brought against the Department for Transport’s (DfT) decision to progress with High Speed 2 (HS2) by an alliance of 15 local authorities, HS2Action Alliance and Heathrow Hub Limited.

Slowly but surely, the Government's road building plans are taking shape. After a three-year phoney war over what they were planning and how they were going to pay for it, we are beginning to get an idea about what is really on the table.

The Government today released initial guidance to Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) on bidding for the Single Local Growth Fund - which pools transport, housing and skills cash - calling on them to integrate plans with Local Transport Bodies.

Winter resilience has been the central focus of pothole concern for the last few years. But with roads suffering degradation due to extreme heat this month, should we begin to look at summer resilience? James Evison reports.

For the fourth consecutive year, Freight Transport Association (FTA) has brought together leading a varied voices from across the transport sector to host the Transport Hub events at the 2013 party conferences.

The Government has launched a public consultation on the route for Phase two of its controversial High Speed Rail 2 (HS2) project, which would take the line from the West Midlands to Manchester and Leeds.

Transport Scotland is being sued for close to £1m by a leading gritting company over claims the transport authority did not tender for salt supplies properly between 2009-11 and ended up being overcharged.

An update on the Highways Maintenance Efficiency Programme’s (HMEP) Pothole Review has been released by the Department for Transport (DfT), as best practice from the project begins to be embedded across the sector.

Improvements to the M4 and possibly a £1bn relief road for the motorway could be financed by tolls on the Severn crossings if the bridges are devolved to the Welsh Government, Welsh finance minister Jane Hutt has revealed.

Plans for the future of London’s roads include the possibility of roofing arterial roads, tolling new infrastructure and enhancing place-making opportunities in the capital, the Mayor’s roads task force (RTF) announced today.

Aviation and rail experts have called for a ‘Heathrow Hub’ - connecting the airport with the M25 motorway, Crossrail, the Great Western Main Line and potentially HS2 - to help tackle the South East’s shortage of airport capacity.

The Government’s Spending Round commitment to boost flood protection funding will not be enough to defend the nation against the rising risks - with threats to roads and food production of particular concern - MPs have warned.

Coalition growth guru Lord Heseltine today gave hope that the modest £2bn annual size of the single local growth fund – which pools transport, skills and housing cash - could increase in the next spending review period.

The Commons transport committee has revealed its list inquiries for the next 12 months, including looking into local decision-making on transport spend and the management of the strategic road network.

Owner of the M6 toll road have offered the Government a deal to allow free use of the motorway at times of peak congestion, in exchange for the firm being released from an obligation to part-finance a link road, it has emerged.

The Treasury has appointed solicitor Margaret Bonsall to lead a new unit to represent the public sector on the boards of PF2 projects – the successor to PFI - and manage its future stake in public infrastructure.

DfT and DCLG among signatories to a new code of conduct for Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) designed to ‘fundamentally change’ the way costs are reduced from the legacy of expensive Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contracts, officials said.

Teenagers present town planners with a unique set of problems. Transport Network’s reporter Tom Bridge takes a look at the public realm issues surrounding this age group and reports on why new thinking might be needed.

Councils are urging ministers to drop ‘counterproductive’ and ‘perverse’ proposals to make local levying boards - including integrated transport authorities - subject to the same rules that govern council tax referendums.

Sponsorship of London’s public transport network should be used to raise hundreds of millions pounds to support fare freezes - in deals that could see Underground lines renamed - London’s Conservatives have urged.

More than 4,000 motorists in England and Wales appealed against local charges for parking on private land in the six months to March this year, with 54% of decisions in favour of the driver, according to a report published today.

The North East has made a concerted push for more transport powers and funding ahead of this month’s Spending Review, with councils and newspaper editors across the region joining forces to lobby the chancellor.

Reform of the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) should focus on economic growth and introduce financial certainty to the sector if it is to be successful, according to the British Property Federation (BPF).

The Highways Agency has announced further complications with its new Asset Support Contracts (ASC), as the £150m-£200m Area 8 contract is forced into a negotiated tender process due to ‘irregularities’ in company bids.

Council chiefs have accused the Government of jeopardising its own infrastructure and flood defences agenda by pushing ahead with plans to tighten financial regulations on integrated transport authorities.

Westminster must devolve a range of powers to the Welsh Government including greater control of rail franchising and bus regulation in order to support an integrated public transport in the devolved nation, influential Welsh Assembly members warned.

A global transport survey covering some for the world’s major cities including London has revealed 90% of urban residents regularly use public transport and are willing to pay more for technological improvements.

Transport authorities generally coped well with the recent cold snap but strategies will have to be revised to keep highway networks open in future years, according to an authoritative report published today.

London cycling commissioner Andrew Gilligan has claimed a new roundabout layout currently being tested in laboratory conditions could be applied to the capital’s roads within a year, despite not conforming to government regulations.

Pressure is growing on the Government to increase rail capacity between London and the south coast, with leading rail consultants calling for major investment in the Brighton Main Line (BML) to avert ‘a crisis of capacity’.

Seven major councils in the North East have unveiled plans to abolish the local integrated transport authority and create a ‘super council’ to boost economic growth by collaborating on transport and skills.

Business secretary Vince Cable has championed City Deals paving the way for more local transport funds, while suggesting the Government’s single growth pot is unlikely to be as large as originally recommended.

Visitors to Traffex this week heard from the Government about how it is using the transport sector to push for economic growth, consulting on proposals to overhaul traffic sign legislation, and creating more sustainable travel..

The Highways Agency has defended its controversial policy to allow traffic to use the hard shoulder on busy stretches of motorway, as it pushes ahead with efforts to reduce congestion on the strategic road network.

Local authorities could lose the power to fund highways projects through both the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) and Section 278 Highways Act agreements, under proposals unveiled by ministers this week.

The Department for Transport’s sector-led Highways Maintenance Efficiency Programme (HMEP) has announced it will be holding a complimentary seminar on guidance for the management of highway drainage assets.

Governments have long aspired to achieve a more integrated transport system, but there are warnings that this may not be possible without integration of
transport policy with other activities. Rhodri Clark reports.

West England authorities have presented a united front following delays to the £200m Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) scheme for the Bristol City region, stating lessons have been learned from the Edinburgh tram project.

Whitehall management of major infrastructure projects, including transport schemes, has been described as ‘worryingly poor’ by a senior government adviser, following the release of a new report focusing on the issue.

The Department for Transport (DfT) is facing national protests after transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin today approved £57m of government funding for the controversial £90m Bexhill–Hastings Link Road.

Highways work under Transport for London’s (TfL’s) groundbreaking London Highways Alliance Contracts (LoHAC) framework will start this week, potentially delivering schemes worth more than £2bn over the next eight years.

On the 50th anniversary of the Beeching report the Department for Transport has told Transport Network the ‘tide has turned’ and many of the local lines that were closed in the wake of that explosive publication are set to be re-opened.

The devolution of rail franchising will be considered on a ‘case by case’ basis following the Government’s publication of a franchising timetable covering the next eight years, Transport Network can reveal.

Sustainable transport charity Sustrans is set to celebrate the opening of Britain’s longest cycling tunnel built on the former Somerset and Dorset railway line - 50 years since the Beeching cuts forced the line to close.

Two major groups of local authorities have unveiled regional growth plans – with a strong emphasis on transport - building on the recommendations made by Lord Heseltine in his report to government No stone unturned.

‘Big data’ analysis software - allowing public sector bodies to cross-reference a vast wealth of different information sets - is the future of local government transport, according to senior figures in the industry.

Transport Network wants to know your opinions on City Deals. Please leave a comment below if you have any insights on what they mean for UK transport. We particularly want to hear from any councils that are developing their own growth plans, after all why wait for Whitehall? Let us know what you have up your sleeve...

With transport seen to be at the core of the provision and promotion of walking and cycling, the Active Travel Conference discussed how local authorities could not only create infrastructure to facilitate physical journeys but also engage with their residents to break former habits.

The vast majority of MPs (77%)are sceptical about the Government’s ability to balance economic growth alongside the development of a sustainable transport system, according to a poll published this week.

Councils are ‘essential’ to successful investment in transport infrastructure, the Local Government Association (LGA) claimed in a briefing released this week outlining future financing and management options for the UK road network.

Concern over the safety of shared-space schemes has been quashed by a consultant on the Department for Transport (DfT) guidance on the issue, who has stated that drivers ‘should take responsibility for their accidents’.

Chancellor, George Osborne, this week confirmed the Green Infrastructure Bank (GIB) would have no borrowing powers until the next Spending Review period, despite being a flagship part of his growth strategy to encourage enterprise.

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) came into force on Tuesday with ministers stating it ‘enshrined’ councils’ local plans as the ‘keystone of the planning system’. Councils with existing plans now have 12 months to legally adopt them and bring them in line with the NPPF, under

Securing capital investment in these difficult economic times is critical not only for better education outcomes but also for the continued support of the ailing construction industry and the drive for eventual growth of our economy. There is no doubt that the demands on school building and its place in the community has changed s

How can we ensure we capture and embrace international best practice in Highway Maintenance? There is clear evidence from the work undertaken by Infrastructure UK that the cost of delivering and managing UK infrastructure is up to 30-40% higher than elsewhere in Europe. Why is this and how can we do more to understa

Chancellor George Osborne has been urged to use next month’s Budget to ‘translate plans into outcomes’, and persuade pension funds to invest a planned £20bn in UK infrastructure. The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) welcomed the National Infrastructure Plan, which Mr Osborne hopes will dri

A £3.4M contract for the design and construction of the Pont y Werin bridge over the River Ely has been awarded by Cardiff Council to Dean & Dyball Civil Engineer, a division of Balfour Beatty Regional Civil Engineering. Pont y Werin is a 140m bascule bridge which will enable pedestrians and cyclists to